Security Notice - Riyadh - 11th and 20th March - FYA

Salman Omrani wrote:

GoWTflow,

you kinda reminded me or sherlock Holmes.

Well, when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth? Just call me Sherlock

@Salman - just call me Sherlock!  When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?

dynamo1131 wrote:

any update on this? I heard that some companies are processing exit visas and getting ready employee's passports and documents and looking up tickets in case something bad happens. It is 2 days before the main event...

I guess It wont be that bad in just 1 or 2 days. If at all something happens, it takes some more days and protests to make a serious impact. Very too early to worry about every thing.

slyshooter wrote:

News about protests happening in Ukraine....

Ukraine protest

Dubliner1967 wrote:

As far as I see it, the only way the Saudis will riot is if they get someone else to do it for them

Good one.

I am still back in the Uk for the next 5 months, so very detached from what you are going through. However, if it was not that I am planning my move out I would know nothing of this situation as there really has been no mention of this at all on our news media. Which, considering the grief I am getting from family about my move to the 'war zone' the less they see about any talk of problems the better - stay safe everyone!

Was speaking to some people who work for a military contractor and the Saudi government have just bought one of the biggest bits of kit to cause communication blackouts.

So what CAF has reported could be true. They will knock out all communication, deal with the protesters and nobody will know anything about it.

Well lets wait and see how hings pan out shall we? Because ther are just too many conflictiong reporst from too many "reliable" as well "un reliable" sources.
Be prepared for anything, be safe, and dont do anything stupid like going to a known sensitive area.

just try and sit back relax watch tele, the world cup is going on, some good matches for sure.

lack of transparant NEWS on the field always creates conflicting reports, some reliable and some non-reliable. So better thing sit back back, wait and C wt happens

Wondering whats going on today. im chilling at home. I want to go out with the cam. but I dont want it getting confiscated by officials. booooooooring.

The gathering was cancelled already last week.

Just back from playing golf and its business as usual. Same amount of cars on the road and the checkpoints not even bothering to stop you.

Well we are back in 'dusty' Riyadh, all looked normal to us from the airport, but it was early. 

Thanks to all the Expat.comgers for the security updates and opinions   when your out of the country this type of feedback is alwas really useful. 

Hubby since been down to Salwa to fetch his motorbike and he said all was as usual.  Let's see how the mood goes this afternoon after prayers but we are not feeling things will get out of hand but will still stay at base just in case.  Besides, some rain will be coming that's for sure

welcome back

uvnpsaradhi wrote:

welcome back

awwh, thanks

NEWS FLASH reporting live from yanbu..............A rather large piece of Tumbleweed just rolled past the house...............

Scotlandthebrave wrote:

NEWS FLASH reporting live from yanbu..............A rather large piece of Tumbleweed just rolled past the house...............

you didnt see John Wayne passing by riding a horse by any chance did you?

only news that gave anything worth reading about today, by al jazeerah : News

Seems everything is back to normal, same amount of cars and same traffic this morning....

I hired a car and headed south, forgot my passport went through a checkpoint and off out into the wilderness saw a few camels, met a goat herdsman and then back into the city later and drove around. Loads of cop cars around with flashing lights but that was the extent of it as far as I could see.

except for some (reported) heightened security patrols/checkpoints nothing much happened in Khobar. Same as most of us expected.

Well, it is great to hear all is well in Saudi and that the Expat members are all safe and well

so much for the Revolution. lol.

OK, in the spirit of transparency, here is another perspective on the protests:

Saudi Arabia show of force stifles 'day of rage' protests
By Sue Lloyd Roberts
BBC Newsnight, Saudi Arabia

I took a taxi from our hotel at midnight on Thursday to find police cars with their lights flashing parked at five-metre intervals along all the main streets in Riyadh.

Policemen standing guard outside a mosque in the capital today
I was pulled over by the police for merely filming on my mobile phone.
On Friday, the city woke up to the sight of more police on the streets than people, and the atmosphere was tense.
The anti-government "day of rage" rallies calling for democratic reforms - not revolution - in this oil-rich kingdom were supposed to start after midday prayers, but people stayed away.
It was hardly surprising, given that over the past few days there had been warnings in the newspapers of the punishments demonstrators could expect - lashings and imprisonment.
And then there is the surveillance and intimidation.
Yet demonstrations have been gathering momentum throughout Saudi Arabia. It was reported that police opened fire on protests in the eastern provinces - home to the Shia minority - on Thursday night.
We went to the eastern town of Dammam to meet the families of political prisoners - some of whom have been held without trial for up to 16 years.
Opposition activists say there are some 30,000 political prisoners in Saudi Arabia, the government puts the figure at one third of that.
My emails and mobile phone are being monitored. I cannot meet you. I am sorry. This is a sad day for Saudi Arabia

Demonstrator
We didn't know we were being followed by the security forces, and after we had finished filming we were arrested and our tapes taken from us.
The message is clear - people should not protest, and if they do, journalists should not report it.
On Friday, I was due to meet one of the demonstration organisers who said he would accompany me to see the protests. But an hour before the rally was due to begin, I received a text message.
"My emails and mobile phone are being monitored. I cannot meet you. I am sorry. This is a sad day for Saudi Arabia."
Demonstrations are illegal in the autocratic kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a country with no legal political parties or mass movements that has been governed by the House of Saud for 80 years.
The government claims people have no need to demonstrate because they have a method of government that works.
But one opposition spokesman described his country to me as "a police state masquerading as a theocracy".
We journalists were herded into buses on Friday and taken to see the "day of rage" non-event.
Helicopters hovered overhead, there were road blocks and cars being searched, hundreds of police cars and thousands of police - but not a demonstrator in sight.
Suddenly, as we were all getting bored of filming each other, a solitary man in his 40s, dressed in casual Western-style t-shirt and jeans approached us.
"We want freedom. We want democracy," he shouted.
"Why are you saying this, in front of all the police?" I asked him.
"I shall go to jail, I know," he replied, shaking with nerves and frustration.
"But the whole country is a jail. I had to speak out."
Within a few minutes, the man was surrounded by a dozen or more journalists, he was the only one in Riyadh on Friday giving a press conference.
There were so many of us there that there was nothing the police could do except speak nervously into their mobile phones and then shepherd us all back into our buses.
But I refused to go and accompanied the man to his car.
I asked for his phone number and shall call him at home - but I don't expect him to answer.
Watch Sue Lloyd Roberts film in full on Newsnight on Friday 11 March 2011 at 10.30pm on BBC Two and then afterwards on the Newsnight website and BBC iPlayer.

Yesterday around 6pm, while on my way back to the flat, I passed by the Ministry of Interior and there are 5 mobile cars around the entrance of the building....things are still getting monitored.

there is a lot of alert and Surviliance arround............

Am following, with interest, what the situation will be for the next planned activity on the 20th March - the current level of activity will be to monitor that. 

Interesting times for the Middle East eh!

It is indeed a very interesting and revealing time for the middle-east and i consider myself lucky to be here at this moment, irrespective of the outcome (+ve or -ve) and contrary to norm, i would like to stay here and witness the change happen (if it ever happens) rather than flee back to my home country.

cheers & stay safe ppl

gowiththeflowUK wrote:

Am following, with interest, what the situation will be for the next planned activity on the 20th March - the current level of activity will be to monitor that. 

Interesting times for the Middle East eh!

Can someone please tell me, what is the significance of March 20th? 

1967tazz wrote:

gowiththeflowUK wrote:

Am following, with interest, what the situation will be for the next planned activity on the 20th March - the current level of activity will be to monitor that. 

Interesting times for the Middle East eh!

Can someone please tell me, what is the significance of March 20th? 

Hey Tazz, it's all on my first post on this thread, go to the beginning and read it there.

Read the article and in my opinion this is typical lazy sensationalist reporting which represents what would appear to be a minority voice. Where is the balance by asking why people did not kick off in the 'day of rage' That of course does not increase viewers or readership.

The truth is that where ever you go in the world there will always be divided opinions becuse of a myriad of reasons. I am aware of the way KSA is ruled and what the authorities allegedly do to maintain the House of Saud, but when I have spoken to Saudi's both in the central and western area before the 'day of rage' and there was a total lack of interest and general apathy about this. Of course this could be because they are part of the population who are working and have a cosseted existence and do not want to see change and that is always going to be the problem in trying for radical change within a society that is used to being told what to do and what to think.

Nothing was ever going to happen in Riyadh, the possible flashpoints were going to be in the eastern region and other than one demonstration which was quashed very quickly according to reports.

There are factions that would love to see KSA destabalised in the hope of coming in and picking up the pieces but this place because of the oil is of such strategic importance to the west , this just would not happen. Where is the international condemnation of what is happening around the middle east? In the main silent or some blowing of hot air as it is felt that is the right thing to be see to do. My feeling is that these countries do not have an impact on the economies of the major industrial powers so who really cares what the little people do!

gowiththeflowUK wrote:

1967tazz wrote:

gowiththeflowUK wrote:

Am following, with interest, what the situation will be for the next planned activity on the 20th March - the current level of activity will be to monitor that. 

Interesting times for the Middle East eh!

Can someone please tell me, what is the significance of March 20th? 

Hey Tazz, it's all on my first post on this thread, go to the beginning and read it there.

Whats facebook?

Day of rage? What rage? Seriously, whoever started up that Facebook group and had 30000+ people register didn't have the cojones to go and do something he believe in? I live in the Riyadh region and honestly, nobody cares whether there's a protest or not.

Everybody I've been talking to was just wishing King Fahad Rd doesn't get any busier during the time! I'm sure we all know that Saudi isn't perfect by any means but it hasn't gone to the level that Egypt and Tunisia have.

Riyadh is practically safe from any protests and troublemakers. The Eastern region however definitely is not. The National Guard are doubling their forces over there from what I've heard as more and more hooligans are planning protests in the name of reform but with a hidden agenda.

El Flamengo wrote:

Riyadh is practically safe from any protests and troublemakers. The Eastern region however definitely is not. The National Guard are doubling their forces over there from what I've heard as more and more hooligans are planning protests in the name of reform but with a hidden agenda.

Hi El Flamengo, unfortunately, it is usually that "hidden agenda" element that does all the damage in these matters!  They are the element that delivers the unpredicted which can make this seemingly non-happening affair, happen!  So, it is definitely worth observing and keeping ones ear close to the ground rather than blissfully skip on thinking all is well.  If nothing happens, then praise be, if something does, then at least people will have been informed and prepared.

Personally, I am praying for peace here and in the troubled world we live in today.

El Flamengo wrote:

Day of rage? What rage? Seriously, whoever started up that Facebook group and had 30000+ people register didn't have the cojones to go and do something he believe in? I live in the Riyadh region and honestly, nobody cares whether there's a protest or not.

Everybody I've been talking to was just wishing King Fahad Rd doesn't get any busier during the time! I'm sure we all know that Saudi isn't perfect by any means but it hasn't gone to the level that Egypt and Tunisia have.

Riyadh is practically safe from any protests and troublemakers. The Eastern region however definitely is not. The National Guard are doubling their forces over there from what I've heard as more and more hooligans are planning protests in the name of reform but with a hidden agenda.

It's proly coz everybody you know is an expat, there are unhappy Saudi's here aswell, due to various reasons and mostly one's that are not in the big towns. So obviously me and you don't want protests as it will distort our income, but they want change.

Does anyone have any updates on Bahrain other than what is one the news?  We have a friend there and he is saying he is not allowed to travel either out of the Country or out of his house!  He is an Expat and has been advised to stay indoors.  As far as we can tell, the airport is still open and they only closed the causeway for the Saudi National Guard to come through in their convoy.  However, if the airlines themselves decide not to put their crews out, then that will dictate that flights will be cancelled and not necessarily the airports.

Who has any updates on the Eastern provinces?

Eastern provinces are pretty much the same.. nothign happening here.. there was a ot of rumors that were floated around during Friday but then that remained.
Bahrain is going on near total shutdown. the causeway was opened in the morning today but heard that the people there are preffering to keep indoors since well, things have gone from somewhat bad to really bad.. most of the businesses have suggested that employees stay indoors.
the expatriate community have been urged to keep a low profile.

thats all I have heard. Will post when I do get something!

Err, I'm a Saudi . I want change, but changes that are introduced slowly as not to cause problems within the communities. A good example would be the UAE. Twenty years ago Dubai was kinda like Jubail and look at it now.

GowiththeflowUK, I'm really not the wishful thinking kind of person. It's just that people of the Riyadh region are content with how things are at the present time. They're also happy with how things are at the moment and would do anything to prevent events like those of Tunisia and Egypt happening.

The only demonstrations in Saudi are happening in Al-Qatif, a small city in the eastern province. I'd suggest anybody living in the eastern region keep as far away as they can from the place.

@El Flamengo, yes, that was pretty much my understanding of things in Saudi, so whilst trouble was brewing and then exploded in Tunisia and Egypt, I was surprised by these recent grumblings coming through to Saudi.  I guess the Bahrain situation fed into that somewhat.  Something that is about to hit the media is the battering of a couple of Expats in Bahrain!
Still, let's see as only time will tell and I will remain optimistic and open minded in all of this but one thing is for sure, where there is oil, there will be a way through this

The news the other day mentioned Marshall Law in Bahrain...  Not sure whats happened, as I was traveling the past two days... 

Sad state of affairs!